I’m fortunate to pastor one of those churches where you don’t know exactly what’s going to happen in a church service. You don’t know what God is going to do, nor for the fact of the matter – what people are going to do. Some people may be uncomfortable with that format, but I’ve discovered that you can’t put God in a box. God doesn’t always move in predictable methods – nor do people.

In a church service recently a little girl, who sometimes is a little rambunctious, slipped out the door and went down the steps to the mailbox. Down the aisle of the sanctuary she came toward the pulpit – her face beaming – she raised her arm with a fist full of mail and announced, “Preacher, you’ve got mail!”

Charles Schultz, the originator of the “Peanuts” comic strip and special television shows, had a talent of humorously zeroing in on the human personality. Charlie Brown’s friend, Lucy summed up his personality with, “You’re a good man, Charlie Brown.”

It is unfortunate that in our day and age “heroes” are not extolled or admired for their goodness but rather are noted for their “badness”. In the early history of the United States, men and women were looked up to for their goodness. Children were taught to emulate such leaders as George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Abraham Lincoln, George Washington Carver, Davy Crocket, Clara Barton, Susan B. Anthony, Jonathan Edwards, and William Booth. Those who helped others were honored – not those who served themselves or expected everyone to serve them – not the greedy, “ganstas”, or the “glamorous”.

I have friends and relatives who work in corrections and law enforcement. They tell me that they must stand in their place of authority. Although they show respect to the inmates and respect the danger of the criminal element, they cannot be “buddies” with them. To do so would put their lives and the lives of those they protect in jeopardy. They must stay in their position or place of authority.

As believers in Christ we have a place of authority. Adam once had dominion over the whole earth. (Genesis 1:26) When Adam sinned, he forfeited or relinquished his position of authority. (Luke 4:6) When Jesus – Immanuel – was begotten of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary, he was given the legal right to regain what was lost.

Have you ever felt brain dead, burned out, stressed out, or just plain worn out? If not, stop reading, this article is not for you. But if you have experienced any of the aforementioned symptoms – you deserve a break today. A fast food restaurant tells you that “You deserve a break today!” But you need more than a quick and easy break. You need a regular, deep, quality break. You need a time of rest, relaxation, and rejuvenation.

Many Hispanic countries have wisely incorporated a daily break into their very culture. In hot climates, people take a siesta to rest and rejuvenate during the hottest time of the day.

Bart was desperate. He was flunking fourth grade. His reputation, his career, his life would be ruined. When he flunked his book report on Treasure Island because he only knew what was on the cover was the last straw. Bart’s teachers, parents, and school psychiatrist decided that Bart should repeat the fourth grade.

Bart pleaded. “Look at my eyes,” he said, “See the sincerity? See the conviction? See the fear? I swear I’ll so better!”

Bart came up with a plan. He made a deal with Martin the Brain. He’d teach Martin how to be cool if Martin would help his pass his history exam. If he passed, Bart would be allowed to graduate.

Israel was chosen and blessed by God. After coming into the Promised Land they decided they wanted a king like all the other nations had. They weren’t satisfied that God himself was their Sovereign protector and provider. He redeemed them from slavery and dwelt among them. They were actually rejecting God as their Sovereign Lord and Father.

God let them have a king to rule over them. He sent the prophet Samuel to anoint the one that He had chosen. Saul was not from a great or renown family but notice what God said about him, “This is the man the Lord has chosen as your king. No one in all of Israel is his equal!” (I Samuel 10:24 NLT)

Her big brown eyes could melt most hearts. Miki, our golden retriever stood looking at her leash and then back toward me. “Let’s go for a walk,” she said. While browsing through a Bible book store, I came across a magnet that had a picture of a golden retriever holding a leash in its mouth. The caption read, “Lead me, Lord.”

Ask yourself, “Who is leading me?” Does the world’s philosophy lead you? Does a person, your fleshly desires, or perhaps the enemy of your soul lead you? The mark of a truly victorious person is found in this sincere prayer – “Lord, lead me!”

I was incredulous as I saw the intense contestant miss such easy answers. How could he not know that the capital of South Dakota is Sioux Falls, or that the all time home-run hitter was not Mark McQuire, but Mickey Mantle, that Moses built and floated the ark, or that Abraham Lincoln was the seventeenth President, elected in 1776. Just think of the money that I could have won had I been the contestant!

The popularity of the game show, “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?” took the television producers by surprise. The program, along with other such game show genre such as Greed, draws millions of viewers each week. Many like to second-guess the contestants, knowing that they could do a much better job if only they were in the hot seat.

It hit me personally almost a decade ago. As I drove into the parking lot, a wooden cutout of an old black crow and a bouquet of black balloons dancing in the wind greeted me. They announced to the world and reminded me, as if I needed reminded, of who was “over the hill”. Many have encountered the same revelation or questioning of themselves that I did that day. Some call it a “mid-life crisis”. We wonder what we really have achieved in life that is significant. Some are disappointed that their goals and expectations were not realized. Others perhaps reached their goals but wonder what’s left in life.

I could not help but notice the family sitting next to me in the restaurant one day. The harried looking mother was trying to corral her rambunctious preschoolers and get them to eat. Suddenly one of the little girls spilled her milk. As the milk ran over the table, spilling onto the floor the mother yelled, in exasperation, “You’re a bad girl! Now sit there until everyone else finishes.”

It was all I could do to restrain myself as I looked at the sobbing littler girl and the angry mother. I wanted so much to tell the mother that her little girl was not a bad girl for spilling her milk. Perhaps she needed reassurance that she was loved and that she should be more careful the next time. Would the little girl grow up thinking that every time she spilled her milk or made a mistake that she was bad, no good, worthless, or unloved?

It only takes surviving a hurricane, a fierce gale of wind at sea, a destructive tornado, or an earthquake to make one a believer in the power of mother nature. The disciples of Jesus knew what it was to face a fierce gale of wind and monster waves while trying to row a small boat at sea. On two separate occasions they encountered a storm at sea. In Matthew 14:24 the gospel tells us that “the boat was already many stadia away from land, battered by the waves; for the wind was contrary”. The disciples were straining at the oars.

The Lionel train raced around the track puffing smoke with its bright headlight beaming through the darkness. I can still smell the smoke belching from the engine’s smoke stack some 40 years later. What is the greatest or most memorable gift you remember receiving for Christmas? Perhaps it was a care package or letter from home while serving in the Armed Forces at a lonely outpost far from home.

Christmas is giving. The very spirit of Christmas is giving. It’s not in material or monetary gifts but it is about the love that motivates the giver.

It seems that the storms and stresses of life throughout the world have increased exponentially sense that dreadful day of 9/11. In fact Jesus said that in the end times, “men’s hearts would fail them for fear of those things that are coming upon the earth” (Luke 21:26). In Matthew 24 Jesus gave some future signs that would point to and precede His return to earth. He referred to this time as “the beginning of sorrows” (Matthew 24:8). He described it as being like a woman in labor pains. Could we be in “the beginning of sorrows” that will usher in the triumphant return of Jesus Christ to planet earth?

Sixteen-year-old Elizabeth and fourteen-year-old Jennifer called their mothers shortly before 11:30 pm on a June night in Houston. They were coming home from a friend’s house. But as they cut through a wooded area they came upon gang members drinking beer and fighting one another. The gang turned its hostilities towards the girls.

Four days later the bodies of Elizabeth and Jennifer were found – strangled to death with a belt and a shoelace. Six young men were charges with rape and murder. One of the boys had appeared on a local television show the before, hoisting a beer and boasting “Human life means nothing”.

In 1776, America’s founders gathered in Philadelphia to draft the Declaration of Independence. A new nation was born – free and independent – the United States of America. In 1787, after the American patriots had won our independence on the bloody battlefields, representatives met to draft the Constitution of the United States.

The Constitution has been amended over the years, but its broad language is illuminated by the Declaration of Independence where the founding fathers outlined their moral vision and the government it implied. The opening lines are perhaps the most important: “We hold these truths to be self-evident.” What were the moral truths? “That all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

A few years ago one of the funniest and exciting comedies was released entitled “The Princess Bride”. Westley, a poor stable boy, searches for TRUE LOVE. Blonde haired Buttercup was kidnapped and taken by evil Prince Humperdinck to be his Princess Bride. But through many perilous hardships Westley finds and save his true love.

The world hungers for true love. An old song says, “Love makes the world go around”. It certainly does. But what is TRUE LOVE? The common Greek word for love is “Eros”. It is not found in the New Testament. It refers to a sexual, selfish, appetitive love. “Philos” is another Greek word for love. It refers to esteem and affection. We are familiar with Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love. The Apostle Paul used a word for God’s love – Agape. Agape is a self-giving love. It involves concerned commitment.

Perhaps the experts are too prone to categorize the youth generation into a neat stereotypical box. I have never been fond of labels personally, possibly because I never seemed to fit into the prescribed order of things. In the past youth “experts” have described the “baby boomer generation”, the “busters”, “generation x”, and the “y generation” population. The new generation of youth has so many “sub-culture” types, that many youth workers realize that one blanket statement could not begin to describe this generation.

When interviewed most teens seemed to share a common sense of searching as in previous generations. Acceptance seemed to be a common desire.

Marsha confessed that she was not in the Christmas Spirit. Perhaps it was the empty nest syndrome and the fact that none of her children could make it home for Christmas. James was far from home and lonely on a tour of duty in Iraq. How could he experience the spirit of Christmas in a strange and stressful country?

What about you, are you in the Christmas Spirit? I have good news for you. Regardless of where you are and how stressful your circumstances, you can experience the Spirit of Christmas. The same spirit that brought Mary joy, wonder, and the miracle of the Christ is available to bless your life today with the Spirit of Christmas.

I must confess – as a child, I was afraid of the dark. I was especially afraid of things that go bump in the dark. A light in my bedroom would comfort me but my dad thought that it was unnecessary. At the time, we had a coal burning stove and occasionally I would have to go down the long dark path to the coal shed to fill the coal bucket in the middle of the night. I out ran the shadows and imaginary monsters in record time on my way back to the house. I still have a long scar on one arm from tripping over a hobgoblin. Surprisingly, I had no fear when my dad went with me and no monsters ever showed up.

Perhaps the most infamous character in history is Judas Iscariot. It he who betrayed Jesus Christ and sold out for thirty pieces of silver – the price of an injured or slain slave in 33 AD.

It was the prophet Zechariah who prophesied hundreds of years before the time of Christ that this betrayal would take place. “And I said to them, ‘If it is good in your sight, give me my wages, but if not never mind!’ So they weighed out thirty pieces of silver as my wages. Then the Lord said to me, ‘Throw it to the potter, that magnificent price at which I was valued by them.’ So I took the thirty shekels of silver and threw them to the potter in the house of the Lord” (Zechariah 11:12, 13 NASB).

What do Meriwether and William, Stan and Oliver, Ben and Jerry, John and Charles, Priscilla and Aquila, Richard Sears and Alvah Roebuck have in common? They all learned that by partnering together, they could accomplish much more than they ever could by themselves.

In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus taught us how to pray with world-changing power, and also gave us great truths about God. (Read Matthew 6:5-18). Consider the first words in the Lord’s Prayer, “Our Father.” Why did Jesus not say, “My Father”? Most Americans have the mindset of me and my. We are more individualistically oriented. Jesus told us to pray “OUR” Father. As we understand and incorporate the power of “our” in prayer, we will experience amazing things. Consider these four power points of “OUR” in prayer.

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation’s service. Sadly, the traditional observance of Memorial Day has diminished over the years. Many Americans have forgotten the meaning Memorial Day. At many cemeteries the graves of the fallen are ignored and neglected. May we honor and remember those who gave their life to combat the enemies of the freedoms we so enjoy and value in America.

As I visit some of the Civil War battle sites and read about the staggering numbers of casualties in the various battles waged by those who cherished liberty, I stand astonished by the vast numbers and sacrifices made by so many. Inspired by the poem “In Flanders Field”, Moina Michael wrote:

It was a rainy fall afternoon when we walked through fallen leaves up the hill of the cemetery to stand by the graves of my two teenage brothers and a cousin, the fallen victims of a young drunk driver. Standing in the cold rain with tears coursing down our cheeks, I was asked the question I’ve been asked a multitude of times by broken, hurting people – “How can I ever forgive the individuals who have perpetrated such horrible hurts?” Many are consumed by the resulting rage and pain of wrongs done to them but others choose not to be.

Imagine facing your worst nightmare. Perhaps it’s Freddy Krueger splintering your bedroom door with a blood soaked axe. You’re lost and you cannot find your way out of a dark house of horrors. Someone is screaming with ear piercing decibels and you wake up realizing that those terrible screams are emanating from your mouth.

Perhaps your fear is not near as dramatic as some people face, but it is just as real. In school, I had a mental block when it came to math. I had an incapacitating fear of math class. For some people the fear factor is simply an adrenaline high reality game show. But the reality is that most people have certain fears that they must deal with. Courage is not the absence of fear but it is punching through the fear. To live the life that God means you to live, you must overcome fear. “Fear hath torment” (I John 4:18). Fear neutralizes, paralyzes, destroys, and stymies faith and love.

As a child, my friends and I would play army and other war games. Perhaps we thought that there was glory in fighting and dying. The Roman poet, Horace, expressed it this way, “Dulce et decorum est Pro patria mori (Sweet and fitting it is to die for one’s country).” I think Horace was wrong. I’ve stood by the graves of too many friends and family members. The dying, grief, and suffering was not glorious. I think it was General Douglas McArthur who said, “War is hell!”